Method and device for setting up a voice call

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a method and a network device for setting up a voice call. The invention further relates to computer programs and computer program products comprising computer readable medium having the computer programs stored thereon. In a first aspect of the invention a method of setting up a voice call between a first party and a second party is provided. The method comprises acquiring information pertaining to at least one detected state of at least one of the first and the second party, determining whether the acquired information pertaining to the at least one detected state of the at least one of the first and the second party satisfies at least one criterion of a scheduling policy for setting up the voice call; and if so causing the voice call to be set up between the first party and the second party.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a method and a network device forsetting up a voice call. The invention further relates to computerprograms and computer program products comprising computer readablemedium having the computer programs stored thereon.

BACKGROUND

The use of voice calls is decreasing as many people favour othercommunication options, such as instant messaging. A difference betweenvoice- and message-based communication is that all users need toparticipate in the process at the same time for voice communication,while this is optional for message-based communication. In fact, in manypeople's opinion message-based communication is favoured for thisreason, as it does not place any requirements or restrictions on theother participant. As this opinion grows it may well be people becomereluctant to use voice-based communication in order to avoid possibleintrusion in the other participant's schedule.

However, whilst the use of voice-based communication is decreasing, manypeople feel that the level of interpersonal engagement is less formessage-based communication, and hence a reduction in voice-basedcommunication may exacerbate any existing feelings of loneliness.

If two people want to engage in a voice call, and ensure that the chosentime is convenient for both parties, then the current typical methods toorganize the call are:

-   -   Use a message based communication to schedule the call, or    -   Schedule a regular call, perhaps with the use of a calendar or        agenda to arrange/track the call times.

Issues with these current methods include:

-   -   While a certain scheduled time for setting up the voice call        appeared to be convenient at the time of scheduling, subsequent        occurring events may imply that that it is no longer so,    -   Where a time appears to be convenient in the sense that it does        not overlap with other activities, the time may not be the most        appropriate for setting up a voice call in that one or both of        the participants/parties may not be in the mood for a        conversation at the scheduled time.

Thus a dilemma exists; while use of voice messaging may reduceloneliness, people are becoming increasingly reluctant to engage in avoice call. Hence, despite the fact that a second participant may be awilling participant in the process, this information is unknown to thefirst participant who is therefore reluctant to make the call.

SUMMARY

An object of the present invention is to solve, or at least mitigate,this problem in the art and to provide an improved method of setting upvoice calls.

This object is attained in a first aspect of the invention by a methodof setting up a voice call between a first part and a second party. Themethod comprises acquiring information pertaining to at least onedetected state of at least one of the first and the second party,determining whether the acquired information pertaining to the at leastone detected state of the at least one of the first and the second partysatisfies at least one criterion of a scheduling policy for setting upthe voice call; and if so causing the voice call to be set up betweenthe first party and the second party.

This object is attained in a second aspect of the invention by a networkdevice configured for setting up a voice call between a first party anda second party.

The network device comprises a processing unit and a memory, whichmemory contains instructions executable by the processing unit, wherebythe network device is operative to acquire information pertaining to atleast one detected state of at least one of the first and the secondparty, determine whether the acquired information pertaining to the atleast one detected state of the at least one of the first and the secondparty satisfies at least one criterion of a scheduling policy forsetting up the voice call, and if so cause the voice call to be set upbetween the first party and the second party.

The network device may be a mobile terminal of the first party, a mobileterminal of the second party, or a mobile terminal of the first partycooperating with a mobile terminal of the second party. For instance,the mobile terminal of the first party may detect a state of the firstparty, while the mobile terminal of the second party determines whetherthe criterion is fulfilled and subsequently sets up the call. Further,the network device may be implemented by an application server. Theapplication server may interact with any one or both of the mobileterminal of the first party and the mobile terminal of the second party.In an example, the mobile terminal of the first party may detect a stateof the first party, while the application server detects whether thecriterion is fulfilled, and the mobile terminal of the second partysubsequently sets up the call.

The network device is equipped with a communication interface and may beembodied in the form of an application server, a computer, a userequipment (UE) such as a smart phone, a tablet, a laptop, a mediaplayer, a smart watch, etc. The network device may implementapplications, or apps, such as Skype, WhatsApp, Face Time, etc., forcommunication. When embodied as an application server, the networkdevice may for instance be implemented as a Google+, Facebook, orWhatsApp service, i.e., provided as a social network service orintegrated with a social network.

Advantageously, by taking into account a detected state of any one, orboth, of a first and a second party between which a call is to beestablished, the setting up of the voice call is made when consideredsuitable according to a scheduling policy stipulating at least onecriterion to which the detected state is compared, if the detected statesatisfies the criterion.

For instance, a state in the form of a physical activity may be detectedby detecting a particular movement of a mobile terminal of a firstparty, for example being a smart phone, tablet, laptop, media player,smart watch, etc. The first party may, e.g., cause her mobile terminalto move according to a known “signature” movement, i.e., a predeterminedpattern of movement indicating that she wishes to receive a voice callfrom a second party.

As an alternative, a physical activity may also be an activityundertaken by the first party, such as a power walk, which is indicativeof being appropriate for receiving a voice call. This user state isregistered by the mobile terminal by means of, e.g., a built-in inertiameasurement unit (IMU) and signalled to a device such as an applicationserver or a mobile terminal of the second party.

Now, the detected activity is compared with one or more criteria of ascheduling policy either at the mobile terminal of the first partywishing to be called (i.e., the callee) or at the mobile terminal of thefriend who is requested to make the call (i.e., the caller) to determinewhether the detected activity satisfies the criteria of the schedulingpolicy required to set up the phone call. For instance, the criterion isconsidered to be satisfied if the IMU readings commensurate with themotion of the callee's gait when walking.

In this particular example, the movement caused by the callee performingthe power walk is registered and compared to a predetermined movementpattern, and if there is a match, the criterion of the scheduling policyfor setting up the call is considered to be satisfied, and the call isthus advantageously set up according to the scheduling policy. Thescheduling policy may stipulate that the voice call is set upimmediately upon determining that the user activity fulfils thescheduling criterion, or after a time period. For example, the calleemay want to be called five minutes after the activity has started andthe movement pattern satisfying the scheduling criteria is has beendetected.

As will be described hereinbelow, in another embodiment of theinvention, the setting up of the voice call may further, oralternatively, include taking into account a detected state of thecaller, i.e., the second party.

Hence, when determining whether a voice call is to be set up between acaller and a callee, detected states of any one or both of the callerand the callee may advantageously be considered.

In an embodiment of the present invention, when setting up the callbased on the scheduling policy, it is determined whether the schedulingpolicy stipulates whether a current time is a time when the calleewishes to be called and/or whether the current time is a time when thecaller wishes to make a call. If so, the voice call is set up to thecallee. For instance, the scheduling policy may stipulate that no callsshould be set up on weekdays 09:00-17:00 as the callee is at work. As afurther example, in case a call was just set up, a further call will notbe set up for a given time period, even though the detected state of thecallee and/or the caller satisfies the criterion. The scheduling policyis typically outlined by one or both of the participants in advance, forinstance by noting in a calendar times which are not appropriate forsetting up a voice call.

The scheduling policy may comprise a number of parameters stipulatingwhether a current time is appropriate for setting up a call to a callee,or whether the current time is suitable for the caller. For instance,the scheduling policy may comprise one or more of the followingexemplifying parameters:

-   -   i. A “Full Call Window”, being a window of time in which the        call(s) are to be made (e.g., a time period extending over one        week),    -   ii. A “Call Quantity”, being the number of calls to be made        within the Full Call Window (e.g., one call),    -   iii. The “Call Window” being the Full Call Window divided by the        Call Quantity (so for example if the Call Window was 4 weeks,        and the Call Quantity 2 then the Call Window would be 2 weeks),    -   iv. The “Window Repetition”, being the number of times the Full        Call Window is to be repeated (e.g., repeat 10 times),    -   v. Disallowed call times (e.g., weekdays before 19:00, Fridays).

As should be understood from this example, the scheduling policy couldbe configured to comprise a complex and elaborate algorithm fordetermining whether a call should be set up.

In a further embodiment of the present invention, the detected state isa position or location of the callee and/or the caller. For instance, inorder for a call to be set up, the callee/caller should advantageouslysatisfy criteria such as “the callee being at home”, “the callee beinglocated on public transport”, etc.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the setting up of the voicecall is automatically performed as stipulated by the scheduling policyof the calle with which the caller wishes to engage in a voice call,without any manual input from the caller. Thus, the mobile terminal ofthe caller automatically sets up a call with the mobile terminal of thecallee in accordance with the scheduling policy. Alternatively, thecaller may be presented with a notification, e.g., by an app used forvoice communications or messaging, such as WhatsApp, Skype, or the like,that a callee has been identified. The notification may be visual oraudible and may optionally request the user to confirm or decline setupof a call with the callee, e.g., by pressing a button.

In another embodiment of the present invention, implemented by anapplication server detecting a state of the first part and a state ofthe second party, both parties may be presented with a respective visualor audible notification that a call with another party is about to besetup, optionally identifying the other party. Optionally, each of theparties may be requested to confirm or decline setup of a call with theother party, e.g., by pressing a button.

In an embodiment of the invention, the detected state is a physicalactivity or a location/position of the first and/or the second party,which advantageously may be registered by a device already available inthe mobile terminal of the respective party such as an IMU, a positionalsensor, a microphone or a physiological sensor associated with theparty, etc., wherein the activity is detected by analysing the recordedsignal. It should be noted that the detected activity not necessarilyrelates to a movement of the mobile terminal, but could alternativelyrelate to non-movement of the mobile terminal. For instance, if themobile terminal is still for a certain period, the scheduling criterionmay be considered to be fulfilled and the call is set up in accordancewith a current scheduling policy, since a party is more likely to bewilling to receive a call if she is not engaged in some activity liketravelling to/from work, playing tennis, or the like.

A modern smart phone (and other such similar devices) has multiplesensors able to estimate a state and/or current activity of a user. Anassessment of sensor development indicates that the amount and accuracyof such sensors is likely to increase in the future, whilst their costis likely to decrease.

Examples of sensors currently available and being developed include:

-   -   IMUs: a modern smart phone now contains several sensors capable        of assessing the movement of their host device. Examples of        inertial sensors include accelerometers, gyroscopes and        magnetometers. Such sensors can be used to assess activity such        as walking, running, cycling etc.    -   Positional sensors: sensors able to provide the location of the        device include dedicated systems such as the Global Positioning        System (GPS), but also the output of other systems, such as        Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and IMUs can be used to gauge the current        location of the device.    -   Physiological sensors: a more recent development in smart phone        sensing is the ability to measure a physiological reading of the        smartphone user. Current systems are able to measure things such        as heart rate or blood pressure, but in the future systems may        also include methods to measure electroencephalogram (EEG)        states or electrocardiogram (ECG) states of the user, pupillary        response, or other measurements able to provide an estimate of        the user's mental state.    -   Microphones: some activities may be easily identified by sound,        even specific acoustic signatures such as lighting a cigarette,        being in a noisy environment, or the like.

These sensors often are provided with smart watches and other wearables,and their data is typically made available to the wearer's smart phonevia wireless communication links, such as Bluetooth.

Hence, the state of the callee and/or the caller is detected byanalysing the recorded signal of any of the above described sensordevices, in order to determine whether the detected state satisfies acriterion of a scheduling policy for scheduling the call according tothe invention. Any sensor with the capacity to determine where thecallee/caller is and/or what she is doing can be envisaged, where theabove given sensors are examples thereof. It may even be envisaged thatit is determined whether the callee/caller is in a particular room ofher home, on public transport, in a taxi, etc.

In still a further embodiment of the present invention, the state of thecallee and/or the caller is alternatively detected by detectingbehaviour of the callee/caller utilizing one or more applications beingexecuted on a mobile terminal.

For instance, the mobile terminal may advantageously be equipped with,e.g., a software component keeping track of a user's interaction withthe mobile terminal, in particular tracking usage of softwareapplication (“apps”). As an example, if the user cycles betweenFacebook, Instagram and her Internet browser, this may indicate that theuser is bored and very much would appreciate a voice call. Since suchinformation is typically known by the operating system (OS) of themobile terminal but not by individual apps, such a software component ismost easily implemented in the OS of the device. Another example is thatthe user cycles between a few websites (for instance NY Times, Engadget,Financial Times, and then back to NY Times again), which is also anindication of boredom and hence that a friendly call is welcome. Again,since most users use the pre-installed browser, the software componentis most easily incorporated into the OS/browser. Hence, this behaviourof the user is registered and the state of the user is consequentlydetected for determining whether it satisfies a criterion of ascheduling policy for setting up the voice call according to theinvention.

Further embodiments of the invention will be discussed in the detaileddescription.

It should be noted that the scheduling policy may comprise a number ofparameters for determining whether the call should be set up, given thatdetected state satisfies a criterion of the scheduling policy forscheduling the voice call, e.g., a time period during which calls can bemade as agreed between the participants, maximum number of calls to bemade during a period, repetition schedule, allowed/disallowed times(e.g., one call per week for the next 10 weeks, between 19.00 and 21.00,any day other than Fridays), etc.

Further, a number of criteria may need to be satisfied for a call to beset up. It can even be envisaged that different types of states of theuser is detected. In an example, a call is set up if it is detected thatall of the below criteria are satisfied:

-   -   (a) The callee is sitting still, i.e., a physical activity is        detected,    -   (b) The callee is browsing her Facebook page, i.e., a user        behaviour is detected, and    -   (c) The callee is at home, i.e., a user position or location is        detected.

Further provided are computer programs for causing a network device or asystem to perform the method according to the invention, and computerprogram products comprising computer readable medium having the computerprograms stored thereon.

Generally, all terms used in the claims are to be interpreted accordingto their ordinary meaning in the technical field, unless explicitlydefined otherwise herein. All references to “a/an/the element,apparatus, component, means, step, etc.” are to be interpreted openly asreferring to at least one instance of the element, apparatus, component,means, step, etc., unless explicitly stated otherwise. The steps of anymethod disclosed herein do not have to be performed in the exact orderdisclosed, unless explicitly stated.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention is now described, by way of example, with reference to theaccompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a system in which an embodiment of the invention isimplemented;

FIG. 2 illustrates a flowchart of a method for setting up a voice call,according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 illustrates a flowchart of a method for setting up a voice call,according to a further embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 4 illustrates a system in which a further embodiment of theinvention is implemented;

FIG. 5 illustrates a flowchart of a method for setting up a voice call,according to a further embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart of a method for setting up a voice call,according to yet a further embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 7 illustrates a system in which still a further embodiment of theinvention is implemented;

FIG. 8 illustrates a system in which yet a further embodiment of theinvention is implemented; and

FIG. 9 shows a network device configured for setting up a voice callbetween a first party and a second party, according to an embodiment ofthe invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The invention will now be described more fully hereinafter withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which certain embodiments ofthe invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied inmany different forms and should not be construed as limited to theembodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided byway of example so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete,and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in theart. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout the description.

The various aspects of the invention will now be described in greaterdetail in connection with a number of exemplifying embodiments. Tofacilitate an understanding of the invention, many aspects of theinvention are described in terms of sequences of actions to be performedby elements of a computer system or other hardware capable of executingprogrammed instructions. It will be recognized that in each of theembodiments, the various actions could be performed by specializedcircuits (e.g., analog and/or discrete logic gates interconnected toperform a specialized function), by one or more processors programmedwith a suitable set of instructions, or by a combination of both.Moreover, the invention can additionally be considered to be embodiedentirely within any form of computer readable carrier, such assolid-state memory, magnetic disk, or optical disk containing anappropriate set of computer instructions that would cause a processor tocarry out the techniques described herein. Thus, the various aspects ofthe invention may be embodied in many different forms, and all suchforms are contemplated to be within the scope of the invention. For eachof the various aspects of the invention, any such form of embodiments asdescribed above may be referred to herein as “logic configured to”perform a described action, or alternatively as “logic that” performs adescribed action.

FIG. 1 illustrates a system 10 of network devices implementing anembodiment of the invention, in which, e.g., an IMU 20 of a mobileterminal 30 is used for detecting a state of a first party to which avoice call subsequently may be set up from a second party's mobileterminal 40 based on the detected state. The communication between themobile terminal 40 of the second party—the caller- and the mobileterminal 30 of the first party—the callee—is effected over anappropriate network 50 such as for instance the Internet or a 3rdGeneration Partnership Project (3GPP) telecommunications network. Thevoice call may be set up as a conventional telephone call via a PublicSwitched Telephone Network (PSTN), a Voice over IP (VoIP) call usingSkype, a Voice over Long-Term Evolution (VoLTE) call, etc.

FIG. 2 illustrates a flowchart of a method performed according to anembodiment of the invention for setting up a voice call. Reference willfurther be made to FIG. 1 for structural elements. In practice, thesteps of the method performed by the mobile terminal 40, 30 of thecaller and the callee, respectively, are caused by a processing unit 60embodied in the form of one or more microprocessors arranged to executea computer program 61 downloaded to a suitable storage medium 62associated with the microprocessor, such as a Random Access Memory(RAM), a Flash memory or a hard disk drive. The processing unit 60 isarranged to cause the mobile terminal 30 to carry out the methodaccording to embodiments of the present invention when the appropriatecomputer program 62 comprising computer-executable instructions isdownloaded to the storage medium 61 and executed by the processing unit60. The storage medium 61 may also be a computer program productcomprising the computer program 62. Alternatively, the computer program62 may be transferred to the storage medium 61 by means of a suitablecomputer program product, such as a Digital Versatile Disc (DVD) or amemory stick. As a further alternative, the computer program 62 may bedownloaded to the storage medium 61 over a network. The processing unit60 may alternatively be embodied in the form of a digital signalprocessor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), afield-programmable gate array (FPGA), a complex programmable logicdevice (CPLD), etc.

Now, in a first step S101, a state of the callee to which a call is tobe set-up is registered, in this particular embodiment by the IMU 20measuring for example a physical activity of the callee such as a changein orientation of the callee's mobile terminal 30 caused by the calleebeing out on power walk, resulting in a particular and distinguishablemovement of the callee's mobile terminal 30. For instance, a particularmovement of mobile terminal 30 is measured by the IMU 20 and registeredby the CPU 60, which indicates that now is an appropriate time for oneof her friends to make a voice call.

It should be noted that detection of the state of the callee may be acomplex process, where a number of measurements are made by the IMU 20and recorded by the CPU 60. Thereafter, the CPU 60 analyses the recordedmeasurements in order to appropriately detect the activity of thecallee.

In a second step S102, the detected state is compared with one or morecriteria of a scheduling policy at the mobile terminal 30 of the calleeto determine whether the detected state satisfies the criteria of thescheduling policy required to set up the voice call, in which case themobile terminal 30 of the callee signals to the mobile terminal 40 ofthe caller over the network 50 that a call can be set up in accordancewith the scheduling policy.

Alternatively, an indication of the detected state is transmitted by themobile 10 terminal 30 of the callee over the network 50 and received atthe mobile terminal 40 of the caller where it is determined whether thedetected state satisfies the criteria of the scheduling policy requiredto set up the voice call.

In this particular example, the change in orientation measured at theIMU 20 caused by the callee moving her mobile terminal 30 during thewalk is registered and compared to a predetermined movement pattern, andis considered to match the predetermined pattern thereby satisfying thecriterion of the scheduling policy for setting up the call.

In step S103, the mobile terminal 40 of the caller thus sets up the callto the mobile terminal 30 of the callee. Advantageously, by taking intoaccount the registered state of the callee, the setting up of the voicecall is made when considered suitable according to the scheduling policyassociated with the criterion to which the registered user activity iscompared, given that the activity satisfies the criterion.

As previously mentioned, even though the detected state of the calleesatisfies the criterion of the scheduling policy for setting up thevoice call, the scheduling policy may in itself comprise a number ofparameters stipulating whether the call should be set up or not, e.g., atime period during which calls can be made as agreed between theparticipants, a maximum number of calls to be made during a period, arepetition schedule, allowed/disallowed times (e.g., one call per weekfor the next 10 weeks, between 19.00 and 21.00, any day other thanFridays), etc.

FIG. 3 illustrates a flowchart of a method performed according to afurther embodiment of the invention for setting up a voice call, wheresuch a parameter of the scheduling policy is taken into account. As inFIG. 2, in a first step S101, a state of the callee to which a call isto be set-up is registered, such as a physical activity, in thisparticular embodiment by the IMU 20 measuring a change in orientation ofthe callee's mobile terminal 30; a particular movement of mobileterminal 30 is measured by the IMU 20 and registered by the CPU 60,which indicates that now is an appropriate time for the callee toreceive a voice call.

In a second step S102, the detected state is compared with one or morecriteria of a scheduling policy at the mobile terminal 30 of the calleeto determine whether the detected activity satisfies the criteria of thescheduling policy required to set up the voice call, in which case themobile terminal 30 of the callee signals to the mobile terminal 40 ofthe caller over the network 50 that a call can be set up in accordancewith the scheduling policy.

Now, in this particular embodiment, the scheduling policy stipulatesthat the callee only wishes to be called on a public holiday, given thatthe criterion is considered to be satisfied.

Hence, if it is determined in step S103 a (by the mobile terminal 30 ofthe callee or alternatively by the mobile terminal 40 of the caller)that today indeed is a public holiday, the voice call is set up to themobile terminal 30 of the callee in step S103. If not, no call is set upin accordance with the current scheduling policy, even if the criterionfor setting up the call is considered to be satisfied. Possibly, anumber of friends will receive a notification that the callee wishes tobe called.

In this embodiment, the “public holiday”-parameter of the schedulingpolicy determining whether the call should be set up can be fetched froma calendar app of the callee and/or the caller. A number of parametersof the scheduling policy stipulating whether a call should be set up ornot can be envisaged, such as learned behaviour (“callee is always atwork weekdays between 9 and 17; calls are hence only set up outside ofthis time window”), information about public holidays (“calls can be setup on a weekday which is a public holiday, since the callee is not atwork”).

Further, a criterion to the effect that a call is more likely to be setup with an increasing time period since the last call can be included inthe scheduling policy. This is advantageous since, if the caller forinstance just talked to the callee for an hour, it is not likely thatthe callee would want a new call to be set up after another couple ofminutes, even if a registered state of the callee indeed would satisfy ascheduling criterion. Further parameters that may be taken into accountin the scheduling policy include, e.g., (a) level of success of previouscalls between the participants that took place under similarcircumstances, and (b) the “need” for the call, as determined by forinstance an EEG sensors (e.g., if the objective of the call is to reducethe loneliness of one participant, then the algorithm can be modified totake into account the current loneliness of that participant asindicated by the EEG measurements). An EEG sensor records electricalactivity of the brain along the scalp using electrodes. The recordedmeasurement can be evaluated to determine whether the user is active ornot. Inactivity would indicate that the user is available for a voicecall.

A number of parameters can be considered, where each parameter is givena weight and where a threshold value should be reached for the call tobe set up. Hence, a scheduling policy may be implemented taking intoaccount a great variety of parameters for determining whether a callshould be set up to the callee in case the registered state satisfies acriterion of a scheduling policy.

FIG. 4 illustrates a system 10 implementing an alternative embodiment ofthe invention, in which, e.g., an IMU 20 of the mobile terminal 40 ofthe second party (i.e., the caller) is used for detecting a state of thecaller in order for a call to subsequently be set up between the mobileterminal 40 of the caller and the mobile terminal 30 of the first party(i.e., the callee) over the network 50.

FIG. 5 illustrates a flowchart of a method performed according to thealternative embodiment of the invention for setting up a voice call.Reference will further be made to FIG. 4 for structural elements. Inpractice, the steps of the method performed by the mobile terminal 40,30 of the caller and the callee, respectively, are caused by aprocessing unit 60 embodied in the form of one or more microprocessorsarranged to execute a computer program 61 downloaded to a suitablestorage medium 62 associated with the microprocessor, such as a RandomAccess Memory (RAM), a Flash memory or a hard disk drive. The processingunit 60 is arranged to cause the mobile terminal 30 to carry out themethod according to embodiments of the present invention when theappropriate computer program 62 comprising computer-executableinstructions is downloaded to the storage medium 61 and executed by theprocessing unit 60. The storage medium 61 may also be a computer programproduct comprising the computer program 62. Alternatively, the computerprogram 62 may be transferred to the storage medium 61 by means of asuitable computer program product, such as a Digital Versatile Disc(DVD) or a memory stick. As a further alternative, the computer program62 may be downloaded to the storage medium 61 over a network. Theprocessing unit 60 may alternatively be embodied in the form of adigital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integratedcircuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a complexprogrammable logic device (CPLD), etc.

Now, in a first step S201, information pertaining to a state of thecaller is acquired, in this particular embodiment by the IMU 20measuring for example a physical activity of the caller such as a changein orientation of the caller's mobile terminal 40. For instance, aparticular movement of mobile terminal 40 is measured by the IMU 20 anddetected by the CPU 60, which indicates that the caller is engaged in anactivity during which she would consider it appropriate to make a voicecall to one of her friends.

In a second step S202, the detected state is compared with one or morecriteria of a scheduling policy at the mobile terminal 40 of the caller(or in, e.g., an application server) to determine whether the detectedstate satisfies the criteria of the scheduling policy required to set upthe voice call, so that a call can be set up in accordance with thescheduling policy between the mobile terminal 40 of the caller and themobile terminal 30 of the callee over the network 50.

In this particular example, the change in orientation measured at theIMU 20 caused by the caller performing a particular activity isregistered and compared to a predetermined movement pattern, and isconsidered to match the predetermined pattern thereby satisfying thecriterion of the scheduling policy for setting up the call.

In step S203, the mobile terminal 40 of the caller thus sets up the callto the mobile terminal 30 of the callee. Advantageously, by taking intoaccount the detected state of the caller, the setting up of the voicecall is made when considered suitable according to the scheduling policyassociated with the criterion to which the registered user activity iscompared, given that the activity satisfies the criterion.

As was described with reference to FIG. 3, a further embodiment maycomprise the step of determining whether the scheduling policystipulates that a current time is a time when the caller indeed wishesto make a call.

FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart of a method performed according to yetanother embodiment of the invention for setting up a voice call. In thisparticular embodiment, a state of the callee (i.e., the first party) aswell as a state of the caller (i.e., the second party) is taken intoaccount for setting up a voice call between the mobile terminal 40 ofthe caller and the mobile terminal 30 of the callee.

Now, in a first step S301, information pertaining to a state of thecallee is acquired, in this particular embodiment by a pulse sensormeasuring the heart rate of the callee at the mobile terminal 30.Further, information pertaining to a state of the caller is acquired, inthis particular embodiment by a positional sensor measuring the locationof the mobile terminal 40 of the caller.

In a second step S302, the detected state of the callee is compared to a100 criterion of the scheduling policy to determine whether the detectedactivity satisfies the criteria of the scheduling policy required to setup the voice call. Hence, if the pulse measurements indicate that thecallee is calm and relaxed, the criterion is considered to be satisfied,and a call can be set up according to the scheduling policy.

Moreover, in the second step S302 the detected state of the caller iscompared to a criterion of the scheduling policy to determine whetherthe detected activity satisfies the criteria of the scheduling policyrequired to set up the voice call. Hence, if the positional sensormeasurements indicate that the caller is in a designated location, suchas in her car, the criterion is considered to be satisfied and a callcan be set up according to the scheduling policy.

In step S303, the mobile terminal 40 of the caller thus sets up the callto the mobile terminal 30 of the callee. Possibly, parameters of thescheduling policy, such as calendar events, are taken into account asdescribed with reference to FIG. 3 for determining whether timing isgood for setting up the call. Advantageously, by taking into account thestates of the callee as well as the caller, the setting up of the voicecall is made when considered suitable according to the scheduling policyfrom the perspective of both the callee and the caller.

Optionally, the caller, the callee, or both, may be presented with anotification, e.g., by an app such as WhatsApp or Skype, that a call isabout to be set up. The caller and/or the callee may then, in responseto the notification, take an action to so as to confirm that they arewilling to engage in a call, or decline. If one of the caller and thecallee declines, the call is not initiated. The notification may bevisual or audible. As an alternative, the caller and/or the callee maybe notified that the call is set up after a certain time period, e.g.,five seconds, unless the caller or the callee declines the call.

FIG. 7 illustrates a system 100 in which a further embodiment of theinvention is implemented, in which information pertaining to thedetected state is transmitted by the mobile terminal 30 of the firstparty (i.e., the callee) over the network 50 to an application server 70where it is determined whether the detected state satisfies the criteriaof the scheduling policy required to set up the voice call, in whichcase the server 70 communicates to the mobile terminal 40 of the secondparty (i.e., the caller) that the call can be set up, and the call isset up to the mobile terminal 30 of the callee as previously describedwith reference to FIG. 2. Alternatively, the server 70 sets up the voicecall between the mobile terminals 30, 40 using for instance technologysuch as an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS).

Hence, with reference to the systems 10, 100 of FIGS. 2 and 4,respectively, if a state in the form of physical activity of the calleeis to be detected, such physical activity is detected by an IMU 20, apositional sensor, a microphone, a physiological sensor, etc., of themobile terminal 30 of the callee, while the determination whether thedetected activity satisfies a criterion of a scheduling policy forsetting up the voice call from the mobile terminal 40 of the caller maybe undertaken at any one of the mobile terminal 30 of the callee, themobile terminal 40 of the caller, or the server 70.

A number of detected states may be envisaged for determining whether acurrent time is an appropriate time for setting up a voice call using amicrophone, e.g., to determine that a party is flicking through TVstations (an indication of boredom), detection of the lighting of acigarette (an indication of availability), etc.

A method performed according to a further embodiment of the inventionfor setting up a voice call will be described with reference to FIG. 7.In this particular embodiment, a state of a callee is detected in theform of a usage behavior of the callee when utilizing one or moreapplications of her mobile terminal, rather than a physical activity ora particular location/position. For instance, the callee cycling betweendifferent apps such as Facebook, Instagram and her Internet browser,setting her WhatsApp status to “available”, starting a particular app,pressing a button on her phone, etc., may indicate that the she is boredand would appreciate a voice call.

Such behavioural activity may either be detected by the server 70, orthe mobile terminal 30 of the callee may be configured for keeping trackof the callee's interaction with the mobile terminal 30, in particulartracking usage of apps. Since such information typically is known by theOS of the mobile terminal, a software component tracking usage of appsis most easily implemented by the OS manufacturer of the device.

Again, the activity (“switching between different apps”) is detected bythe mobile terminal 30, or the server 70 (or any other appropriatenetwork node having the capability to analyse network trafficoriginating from the mobile terminal 30 to detect the activity), and itis determined whether the detected activity satisfies a criterion of ascheduling policy for setting up the voice call. For instance, thecriterion to be satisfied may be formulated as “switching between atleast 10 apps during a period of 10 minutes”, and if so, the call is setup between the mobile terminal 40 of the caller and the mobile terminal30 of the callee according to the scheduling policy (e.g., “set-up thecall if it is Saturday” AND “no call has been set up with the calleeduring the last five days”).

In still an embodiment of the present invention, if it is determinedthat a call should be set up, the mobile terminal 40 of the callerautomatically sets up a call with the mobile terminal 40 of the caller(possibly by indicating in advance on the display to the caller that acall indeed will be set up). Alternatively, an app of the mobileterminal 40, such as FaceTime, Skype, WhatsApp, etc, will indicate tothe caller that a call can be made.

With reference again to FIG. 1, an algorithm for determining whether oneor more criteria is satisfied in order for a call to be set up accordingto a scheduling policy will be described.

Thus, the CPU 60 may run a set of algorithms 62 stored in memory 61,which are able to take data collected from the sensor 20 as an input anddetermine the state of the user of the mobile terminal 30, and ifappropriate a quantitative measure of that state, in one or morecategories such as current activity being undertaken, mood, locationetc. The output of this algorithm is a set of parameters that describethe various states of the user, which are typically stored in the memory20. The algorithm may operate as follows:

-   -   i. Various user states may be given scores using for example a        scale of 0 to 10. For example, if “tiredness” is a user state        that is to be detected, then the state may range from S=0        (extremely tired) to S=10 (not tired at all), as measured by an        EEG sensor.        -   A further user state that is to be detected may be “physical            activity”, where S=0 would be given for a state where the            user is running (and is not likely to want to receive a            call), while S=10 would be given for a state where the user            is still (and is likely to want a call), for instance at            home in her sofa, as measured by an IMU.        -   A total score (TS) could then for instance be expressed as            the sum of the individual scores, where 20 would indicate            that the user is 1) completely still and 2) wide-awake,            thereby wishing to receive a call.    -   ii. The total score TS is compared to a threshold value of, for        example, T=10. If TS>T, the detected user state (in this example        a combination of two user states: “tiredness” and “physical        activity”) is considered to satisfy the scheduling criterion,        and a call would be set up between the mobile terminal 40 of the        caller and the mobile terminal 30 of the callee, given that the        scheduling policy stipulates that a current time is appropriate        for making the call.

In a further embodiment, the threshold value T is weighted with a factor(ranging from for instance 0.1 to 1) indicative of the time that haselapsed since the last call was set up to the callee. In thisembodiment, the threshold value T is decreased by the factor the longerthe elapsed time is since the last call was made, advantageously havingthe effect that a user state is more likely to satisfy the schedulingcriterion if a long period of time has elapsed since the last call.Hence, with the weighting factor, the threshold value T is set todecrease linearly over a time period since the last call was set up. Forinstance, the weighting factor w could be calculated asw=1/(t_now−t_last_call), where t_now−t_last_call e.g is measured in fulldays. Hence, T will decrease as the time elapsed since the last callincreases. It should be noted that many different algorithms may beenvisaged for determining an appropriate weighting factor.

As previously has been mentioned, a number of sensors may be used forembodying the sensor 20, for instance an IMU for measuring physicalactivity, location or position of a user, an EEG or ECG sensor formeasuring a physiological state of the user, or a software-basedcomponent for measuring the behaviour of the user when managing variousapps on her mobile terminal 30, such as the user's behaviour whenbrowsing various Internet sites. Hence, with the proposed sensors, anumber of different user states can be detected for determining whethera call should be set up to the user. A number of examples will be givenhereinbelow.

1. Activity user state: IMUs within a modern smartphone allow thedetermination of certain motion-based activities. Examples of IMUsinclude accelerometers, gyroscopes and magnetometers. The motiondetected by these sensors are compared to predetermined “signatures” tosee if the current motion matches that which occurs when the user is,e.g., walking, jogging, cycling, etc. Where “patterns” of motion areassessed, it may be possible to ascertain if the person is playing acertain sport such as football, or if she is causing a deliberatemovement of her mobile terminal to indicate that she wishes to becalled. Other activities have distinct signals other than motion. Forexample, the sounds plus an analysis of the “echo” of those sounds mayindicate that a person is bathing their children in the bathroom,another example would be a combination of odour and acoustic sensorsdetecting when a person is cooking. Further, she may indicate in an appsuch as Lync or WhatsApp that she likes to talk, in response to whichthe invention finds someone to call her.2. Emotional user state: a possible measure of whether a person isexperiencing positive emotions or negative emotions is to measure theasymmetry of brain signals in the user's left and right side of theirbrain. Hence, if the sensor being used is an EEG sensor it may bepossible to discern happy emotions from sad emotions.3. Cognitive user state: where a user is wearing an EEG sensor and has alow signal of so called alpha waves, it may be an indication that theuser is being attentive to a stimulus (i.e., concentrating). A secondmethod to estimate cognitive state is through the use of pupillaryresponse—whereby task-evoked pupillary response (i.e., the change of aperson's pupil size when undertaking a task) can be used to estimate her“cognitive load”. Thus, if the user is wearing a sensor able to measurethe changes in size of her pupils to a certain accuracy, theninformation about her cognitive state (e.g., the amount of concentrationthey are undertaking) can be obtained. The measurement of a user'spupils may give an indication as to whether the user is mentallystimulated, and performing tasks. If these signs are not present, it maybe an indication that the user is inactive—and possibly bored and/orlonely. The user may thus be considered to be available for a call.

FIG. 8 illustrates a system 100 according to a further embodiment of theinvention, where a callee associated with the mobile terminal 30indicates that she wishes to be called by any one of a number of secondparties associated with mobile terminals 40, 80 and 90, respectively.These second parties are typically friends which, for instance, may beidentified via the callee's phone book or via a social media networksuch as Facebook. In this particular embodiment, a state of the calleeto which a call is to be set-up is detected for instance by an EEGsensor 20 of the callee's mobile terminal 30 registering a level oftiredness of the callee.

In this particular embodiment, if it is detected by the EEG sensor 20that the callee is alert and ready for a call (i.e., that a criterion ofthe scheduling policy of the callee is satisfied), a state of each ofthe potential callers associated with the mobile terminals 40, 80 and 90is detected by a respective sensor (not shown).

The state of each of the potential callers is then compared to acriterion of a scheduling policy associated with each potential caller,and if any one of the states satisfies the criterion, a call can be setup with one of the potential callers. If for instance a correspondingstate of “tiredness” is detected, the potential caller being “leasttired” is selected for setting up the call, if the scheduling policyallows for a call to be set up. This may for instance be determined byassigning a score to the respective state as previously has beendiscussed and selecting the potential caller having the highest score.Hence, assuming that the caller of mobile terminal 40 has a score ofS=3, the caller of mobile terminal 80 has a score of S=7, and the callerof mobile terminal 90 has a score of S=4, the caller of mobile terminal80 will be selected to set up the call to the callee, given that thescheduling policy allows for a call to be set up. Such determination maybe performed by the server 70.

It should be noted that even though the detected state of the callee andthe caller associated with the mobile terminal 80 satisfies theirrespective criterion of the scheduling policy for setting up the voicecall, the scheduling policy may in itself comprise a number ofparameters stipulating whether the call should be set up or not, e.g., atime period during which calls can be made as agreed between theparticipants. Hence, in case the scheduling policy of the caller of themobile terminal 80 does not allow a call to be set up, the next-bestpotential caller associated with the mobile terminal 90 will beselected, and so on.

FIG. 9 shows a network device 30 configured for setting up a voice callbetween a first party and a second party according to an embodiment ofthe invention. The network device 30 comprises acquiring means 31adapted to acquire information pertaining to at least one detected stateof at least one of the first and the second party, determining means 32adapted to determine whether the acquired information pertaining to theat least one detected state of the at least one of the first and thesecond party satisfies at least one criterion of a scheduling policy forsetting up the voice call. Further, the network device 30 comprisesmeans 33 adapted to cause the voice call to be set up between the firstparty and the second party. The acquiring means 31, the determiningmeans 32 and the set up means 33 may comprise a communications interfacefor receiving and providing information, and further a local storage forstoring data. The acquiring means 31, determining means 32 and set upmeans 33 may (in analogy with the description given in connection toFIG. 1) be implemented by a processor embodied in the form of one ormore microprocessors arranged to execute a computer program downloadedto a suitable storage medium associated with the microprocessor, such asa RAM, a Flash memory or a hard disk drive.

The invention has mainly been described above with reference to a fewembodiments. However, as is readily appreciated by a person skilled inthe art, other embodiments than the ones disclosed above are equallypossible within the scope of the invention, as defined by the appendedpatent claims.

1. A method performed by a network device of setting up a voice callbetween a first party and a second party, comprising: acquiringinformation pertaining to at least one detected state of at least one ofthe first and the second party; determining whether the acquiredinformation pertaining to the detected at least one state of the atleast one of the first and the second party satisfies at least onecriterion of a scheduling policy for setting up the voice call; and ifso causing the voice call to be set up between the first party and thesecond party.
 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the acquiringof information comprises: acquiring information pertaining to at leastone detected state of the first party and to at least one detected stateof the second party; wherein the determining comprises: determiningwhether the acquired information pertaining to the at least one state ofthe first party satisfies the at least one criterion of the schedulingpolicy for setting up the voice call and whether the acquiredinformation pertaining to the at least one state of the second partysatisfies the at least one criterion of the scheduling policy forsetting up the voice call.
 3. The method according to claim 1, thedetermining further comprising: determining whether the schedulingpolicy stipulates that a current time is a time when the first partywishes to be called and/or a time when the second party wishes to make acall.
 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the at least onedetected state is a physical or mental activity.
 5. The method accordingto claim 1, wherein the at least one detected state is a position orlocation.
 6. The method according to claim 4, wherein the at least onedetected state is detected based on a signal of an inertia measurementunit, a positional sensor, a microphone, or a physiological sensorassociated with the at least one of the first and the second party. 7.The method according to claim 1, wherein the at least one detected stateis detected based on a usage behaviour of at least one of the first andthe second party utilizing one or more applications being executed on amobile terminal operated by the at least one of the first and the secondparty.
 8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the at least onedetected state is assigned a score and is considered to satisfy said atleast one criterion if the assigned score complies with a scorethreshold.
 9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the likelihoodfor the voice call being set up increases with a time period that haselapsed since the first party and the second party last were in contactwith each other.
 10. The method according to claim 1, furthercomprising: detecting at least one state of each of a plurality ofselected second parties with which the voice call may be set up;determining whether the detected at least one state of each of theplurality of selected second parties satisfies at least one criterion ofa scheduling policy for setting up the voice call; and if so causing thevoice call to be set up between the first party and a selected one ofthe plurality of second parties satisfying the criterion.
 11. A computerprogram comprising computer-executable instructions for causing a deviceto perform steps recited in claim 1 when the computer-executableinstructions are executed on a processor included in the device.
 12. Acomputer program product comprising a computer readable medium, thecomputer readable medium having the computer program according to claim11 embodied therein.
 13. A network device configured for setting up avoice call between a first party and a second party, the network devicecomprising a processing unit and a memory, said memory containinginstructions executable by said processing unit, whereby said networkdevice is operative to: acquire information pertaining to at least onedetected state of at least one of the first and the second party;determine whether the acquired information pertaining to the at leastone detected state of the at least one of the first and the second partysatisfies at least one criterion of a scheduling policy for setting upthe voice call; and if so cause the voice call to be set up between thefirst party and the second party.
 14. The network device according toclaim 13, said at least one network device being a mobile terminal ofthe first party, of the second party, or of both parties.
 15. Thenetwork device according to claim 13, said at least one network devicebeing an application server.
 16. The network device according to claim13, further being operative to, when acquiring information: acquireinformation pertaining to at least one detected state of the first partyand to at least one detected state of the second party; and beingoperative to, when determining: determine whether the acquiredinformation pertaining to the at least one state of the first partysatisfies the at least one criterion of the scheduling policy forsetting up the voice call and whether the acquired informationpertaining to the at least one state of the second party satisfies theat least one criterion of the scheduling policy for setting up the voicecall.
 17. The network device according to claim 13, further beingoperative to, when causing the voice call to be set up: determinewhether the scheduling policy stipulates that a current time is a timewhen the first party wishes to be called and/or a time when the secondparty wishes to make a call.
 18. The network device according to claim13, wherein the at least one detected state is a physical or mentalactivity.
 19. The network device according to claim 13, wherein the atleast one detected state is a position or location.
 20. The networkdevice according to claim 18, further comprising: an inertia measurementunit, a positional sensor, a microphone, or a physiological sensor,configured to detecting said at least one state.
 21. The network deviceaccording to claim 13, further being operative to, when detecting the atleast one state: detect usage behaviour of the at least one of the firstand the second party utilizing one or more applications of a userequipment.
 22. The network device according to claim 13, further beingoperative to assign to the detected state a score, wherein the detectedstate is considered to satisfy said at least one criterion if theassigned score complies with exceeds a score threshold.
 23. The networkdevice according to claim 22, wherein the likelihood for the voice callbeing set up increases with a time period that has elapsed since thefirst party and the second party last were in contact with each other.24. The network device according to claim 13, further being operativeto: detect at least one state of each of a plurality of selected secondparties with which the voice call may be set up; determine whether thedetected at least one state of each of the plurality of selected secondparties satisfies at least one criterion of a scheduling policy forsetting up the voice call; and if so causing a voice call to be set upbetween the first party and a selected one of the plurality of secondparties satisfying the criterion according to the scheduling policy.